Skip To Main Content

Upcoming Events and Recent Results

Western Illinois University Athletics

X

Men's Soccer Opens Regular Season

| By: WIU Athletic Communications

Leathernecks host Central Methodist, Drake in opening weekend.

Who | Western Illinois (0-0-0) vs Central Methodist (0-0-1) / Drake (0-0-0)
When | Thursday, Aug. 25 – 5 p.m. / Monday, Aug. 29 – 5 p.m.
Where | John MacKenzie Alumni Field – Macomb, Ill.
Social media | Instagram + Twitter + Facebook 

Matchup History: Western Illinois and Central Methodist have played twice in program history, facing off in 2020 and 2021; CMU won both previous matchups. Last season, Western Illinois fell 0-2 in a road matchup to open up the 2021 season. Players such as Kyle Owen, Benedikt Zechmeister and Jaylen Drummond all played and started as the Eagles led the game in shots and corners. Against the Drake Bulldogs, Western holds an 8-21-2 record all-time in a series that dates back to Sept. 25, 1988. Last season, the Leathernecks fell 0-1 in a closely-contested road matchup early in the season. Western led the game in shots, 14-6 (7-2 on goal), corner kicks, and fouls drawn, but the Bulldogs used a 19th minute goal and stood tall with seven saves made by the starting goalkeeper.

Players to watch: The Summit League announced Alex Flowers and Sofian Maghouz as players to watch on Tuesday (Aug. 23), and they will be two players to watch during Thursday's matchup.
 
Flowers is coming off a strong sophomore season that saw the Schaumburg, Ill., native earn Second Team All-Summit honors for his performances. Flowers made 65 saves in 14 appearances (13 starts) last season, with his average of 4.64 saves per game leading the league. He had a career-best 12 against Louisville on Sept. 28, and had seven games of six-plus saves while pitching two shutouts: one against Bradley (Oct. 18) and again two weeks later in a victory over Eastern Illinois (Oct. 30).
 
Maghouz is entering his first year at Western Illinois after joining the team as a transfer during the offseason. Originally from London, England, Maghouz is an attacking midfielder who started his career at Division-II side Carson Newman before playing one season at Iowa Lakes Community College. In his two seasons of collegiate action, Maghouz has a combined total of 11 goals and five assists across 29 appearances, earning NJCAA All-American and First Team All-Region honors after a 2021 season that saw him finish with eight goals and four assists.

So far this season: WIU men's soccer played two exhibitions during this year's preseason, finishing with a 1-1 record. The schedule started with an Aug. 13 matchup against Loyola Chicago, as Liam Gainey scored in a 1-2 defeat. On Aug. 19, Western won 3-2 against Chicago State, with Muazu Sagir scoring off an assist from Gainey before Arian Mehrang bagged a brace of his own. Western's defense held strong the rest of the way as the Leathernecks outshot the competition and drew 22 fouls.

Scouting the opponents: Central Methodist has played one regular season game thus far, playing to a scoreless tie against No. 11 Tulsa last week. The Eagles are coming off a 22-1 season in 2021, when they finished the regular season unbeaten and fell in the semifinals of the national tournament. Drake has played three exhibitions so far this season, opening the exhibition schedule with a 5-2 loss at Creighton before facing Grand View and William Penn in exhibitions that were not scored. The Bulldogs open their season on Thursday (Aug. 25) with a road match against Kansas City before traveling to Macomb for Monday's matchup.

What's next: After this weekend's slate, the Leathernecks will hit the road for two games, starting with a Sept. 2 matchup against Fort Wayne that is followed by a matchup with IUPUI on Sept. 4.
 
Print Friendly Version

Related Videos

Now Playing:

Related Stories